Water-loving dogs to perform at Rose Parade

At this year's Rose Parade, the Natural Balance pet foods float has flowers. But no doubt, the stars of this float are the pooches.

A group of dogs diving into a pool will be one of the float's main attractions.

Among the divers is Arcadia resident Quinn Hettich's dog, Bubbles.

Quinn turns 8 years old on New Year's Day. His gift will be a ride on the float.

"It's my float because it's my birthday on that day," the boy said.

Also on Quinn's float will be a group of skimboarding dogs, including Tillman, a bulldog who usually skateboards.

"He learned to skimboard during a heat wave a couple of summers ago when it was too hot to skate," said Tillman's owner, Ron Davis of Oxnard. "I took him to the beach everyday and he finally got it. He just loves it."

Filling the pools took more than 35,000 pounds of water.

The California Highway Patrol weighed the float Wednesday. It tipped the scale at 84,000 pounds, a new Guinness world record.

Driving all that weight to Pasadena could be a challenge. The test run failed when a bump in the road damaged the tires.

"We had to jettison 35,000 pounds of water, get the dogs off and get it toed," said Joey Herrick, the president of Natural Balance.

If it rides on New Year's, it probably won't earn the top floral prize. But onlookers say its stars are clear winners already.